


Immense & Infinitesimal

by knightinpinkunderwear



Series: Dexter and Rita [1]
Category: Dexter (TV)
Genre: Canon Rewrite, Canon Universe, Domestic, Domestic Fluff, Don't copy to another site, F/M, Falling In Love, Fluff, Garlic breath, Kissing, Love Confessions, Short & Sweet, Short One Shot, bad breath
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-02-15
Updated: 2020-02-15
Packaged: 2021-02-28 00:28:24
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 459
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/22744792
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/knightinpinkunderwear/pseuds/knightinpinkunderwear
Summary: Just a little moment where Dexter tells Rita he loves her.
Relationships: Rita Bennett/Dexter Morgan
Series: Dexter and Rita [1]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1639873
Comments: 4
Kudos: 39





	Immense & Infinitesimal

**Author's Note:**

> The little things are what love is made of. So what better way to get Dexter to say the three words than a little thing?

He was visiting for the afternoon. Just spending time at Rita's. 

He'd just leaned in to kiss her, Rita stopped him with fingers to his lips. 

"You probably don't want to do that, I have garlic breath," Rita said with an embarrassed smile. 

"I think I can handle a little garlic," Dexter grinned back.

"If you say so," Rita acquiesced.

 _Oh_. That was not a _little_ bit of garlic. 

Dexter pulled back slowly, the nasty taste of garlic breath still in his mouth. He must have been making a face from it becuase Rita was chuckling in sympathy.

"Disgusting, isn't it? I _did_ warn you," she smiled, wide and endearing. 

"And next time I'll take your word on garlic breath," he remarks, thinking about his distinct lack of breath mints or gum, sending a smile her way. It may have been a gross flavor, but she'd tried to protect him from it. 

Rita laughed, the way she usually did when he says something dryly. To her, he had a sense of humor. 

He really liked Rita, spending time with her, the little moments like this. The way she cared, the way she made him feel. The way he cared about her. 

"I love you," he says the words, and it feels like the most important thing he's said in his life. Like the phrase has the weight of the whole world and it has been weighing him down since he was a teenager, wondering if he'd ever get to feel human.

And he feels like crying from joy, becuase he _does_. He feels. He cares. He loves. 

Not just a liking of time spent with Rita, he loves _her_. 

"I love you too," the way Rita's face lights up when she processes the words is amazing. He'd like to slow it down and keep each tiny shift in her expression somewhere to look back on forever. He never really understood how people could say that another person melted due to emotional reactions but he thinks he does now. 

The way her gaze softens and fills with something so kind and purely real, it's beautiful. The way the joy and softness in her eyes bleed into the rest of her face, her lips widening into a huge smile. 

He understands why he'd wanted it so badly before. To love. 

It's different from the way he loves Deb, or the way he loved their parents. 

And it felt precious. 

He feels a little silly later that night, thinking how garlic breath (of all things) had spurred on such a life-changing admission.

After months of dating, such a small thing allowed him to say it.

But then again, with how _human_ and contented he felt now, how could he really regret it? 

**Author's Note:**

> Dexter loved Rita so much, and their romance was the sweetest darn thing. 
> 
> Thank you for reading!


End file.
